kokopelli-az

We're sailing on Aug 13, too, out of Fort Lauderdale (8 nights, fully vaccinated). Depending on where you look, part of Celebrity's covid testing requirements say two days ahead of sailing and part say three days ahead of sailing. We have changed our testing dates twice now and decided we'd better go with testing two days ahead of sailing (which for us is Thurs Aug 11).

What cruise line are you going to be on? I've never heard of one that allows you to leave a scooter outside the room.

Here is a link from Royal Caribbean regarding wheelchairs or mobility devices. You should contact their Access Dept to advise them your friend has mobility issues. https://www.royalcaribbean.com/experience/accessible-cruising/mobility-disabilities

You should also contact your cruise line's Access Department to advise them you will be having mobility difficulties. You might ask if they have any accessible staterooms you could switch to. You need to be able to get your scooter through the stateroom door. If you rent from Special Needs at Sea or Scootaround they will be able to tell you where you will pick up your scooter (pier or your stateroom).

July 2023 is too far away for the cruise lines to have their excursions lined up. Especially the accessible excursions. What cruise line are you going to be on?

Haha. We live in Vancouver, Washington. I don't know how many people we've talked to on cruises who ask where we're from. We say Vancouver, Washington. Then they tell us how they were in Vancouver on a cruise. They're talking about Vancouver BC. This has happened numerous times to us. So we just started saying we live in Portland Oregon, right across the river. Much easier 😉

You didn't say if your wife's wheelchair is collapsible, but my husband has a collapsible wheelchair we took to Europe. We used Papillon Services for sightseeing. They were beyond excellent and arranged an excursion specifically for us. It was one of the best excursions we have ever done. I don't know if they have vehicles with a lift but you could certainly contact them if you need one. They have tours to a lot of the places you will be. We told them what we wanted and they put together a tour for us, They said they could include a winery tour so I'm sure they could put together something with a winery(ies). They were very responsive and answered our questions quickly. https://www.papillonservice.com/ Here are some other companies we considered but did not use. I basically emailed all of them and told them about the wheelchair and the basics of what we wanted to do. https://www.joebananalimos.net/cruise-port-tours https://www.romeinlimo.com/ http://www.shoreexcursionsinitaly.net/2/shoreexcursions_in_italy_tours_3161377.html https://www.stefanorometours.com/ Here's one we did not research but they cater to wheelchair users: https://www.romeanditaly.com/accessible/accessible-shore-excursions/

We just received an email from Celebrity yesterday that says: A new world is waiting as destinations begin to adjust to relaxed COVID-19 protocols and we are working to make it easier to explore on a cruise with some new protocols of our own.Our intention is to work in phases, ensuring the health and safety of our guests and crew remain at the forefront of every decision we make.As a first step, beginning August 8, 2022, vaccinated guests on U.S. departures that are 5 nights or less will no longer need to test to sail with us.For all U.S. sailings 6 nights or longer, that do NOT visit Canada or Bermuda, both vaccinated and unvaccinated guests will need to present a digital or physical copy of a supervised and negative COVID-19 test result from a test taken within 3 days prior to sailing.At this time, our vaccination requirements remain in place.

All you will see when you exit the terminal is a sea of yellow (and other colors) taxis. There is someone who coordinates the passengers wanting a taxi and the taxis. You will see a line of people waiting for taxis and the line goes fairly quickly.

What are your port stops and which cruise line?

So it's now back to taking the Covid test 3 days prior to sailing?? It was just 2 days not very long ago. If it is now 3 days, we are departing on Aug 13 and want to take the antigen tests on August 10. For 3 days prior to sailing, this is correct (datewise), right?

We cruised out of Miami this spring and just took a cab. My husband has a collapsible transport chair and it has always fit in the trunk of taxis (even though a couple of times we had to remove the foot rests). The taxis are lined up at the airport with someone there coordinating the passengers with the taxis. You could tell the person in charge that you need a larger vehicle to accommodate the wheelchair. My husband takes a lot of time getting into and out of the taxi but there's never been a problem. The taxi drivers all know how to get to the cruise ship port. When we have used Uber, we always reserve the Uber XL which is a larger vehicle (usually a SUV).

Have you considered a rollator with a seat? At least if you have to stop, you will be able to sit down. There are many available and you could do an Internet search to see the different types. If you have a mobility store near you, you could go and look at them in person. Rollators can be purchased or rented. Carnival's recommended rental company is Scootaround. Regarding a scooter, again, if you have a mobility store nearby, go and take a look and do a test drive so you can get a feel for how they operate. The scooters that are rented from Scootaround are the Pride Go Go line. The problem is going to be if you do not have an accessible stateroom. You would have to check with the rental company and also Carnival to be sure the scooter will fit through your stateroom door. Possibly Carnival has an available accessible stateroom that your could switch to? Another thing to consider is a prop to hold open your stateroom door while you get the scooter in/out. (Some accessible staterooms have automatic doors.) Don't forget about requesting wheelchair assistance for embarking and disembarking. Even if you have a rollator, the wheelchair pusher can hang the rollator on the back of the wheelchair while he pushes or you could hold it in your lap. They can push you through check-in and then to your stateroom or any other public area on the ship. If you rent a scooter and it is waiting for you in your room, you can still request wheelchair assistance to get to your room. I hope you don't give up on cruising. There are many, many people on cruises who have mobility (and other) issues. I do know that a scooter has given my husband more freedom and independence than he has ever had and he can't wait to get to our stateroom so he can get "his" scooter. There are lots of threads on this board about scooters. Doing a search might give you some insight from others who use a scooter or are thinking about renting one. Some information from Carnival: https://www.carnival.com/about-carnival/special-needs/wheelchair-users

Try ScootAround.com and SpecialNeedsatSea.com. Although based in the US, they rent equipment worldwide (they have partner companies in other countries). Both companies rent lifts/hoists. And Special Needs at Sea specifically lists Copenhagen as one of the cruise ports they serve. And if you haven't already done so, contact Royal Caribbean's Access Department to let them know you will be bringing (or renting) medical equipment. Access Department (866) 592-7225, or send an e-mail to special_needs@rccl.com Scootaround (formerly CareVacations) Phone: 888-441-7575 Local: 204-982-0657 Fax: 204-478-1172 E-mail: info@scootaround.com Special Needs at Sea Phone: 800-513-4515 Local: 954-585-0575 Fax: 800-513-4516 E-mail: info@specialneedsgroup.com

Do you mean your cruise leaves from Port Everglades? I don't see that NCL has any departures from there.

Here is a Patter from one of the sea days last month on the Caribbean Princess that might give you an idea of what to expect.

Maybe. Level 1 does not necessarily mean accessible. Will the stairs getting into the bus be a problem? Are you planning on taking the motorized wheelchair or the rollator? And is there a place on the bus and tour boat to store which ever one you take? You should contact NCL's Access Department and ask if there will be any accessible tours for your cruise. Ask NCL specifically about the tours you have booked and whether your husband will have trouble getting on the bus, etc. NCL can contact the tour operator for specifics and answers to your questions. Note that since you are crusing in November, it may be too early for NCL to have all the tours set up. Take a look at the link; there is a section on shore excursions. Please contact NCL's Access Department for additional information (and any forms they need you to complete). https://www.ncl.com/about/accessible-cruising

I think you're right. Thanks.

We did go in June but this cruise was out of Fort Lauderdale. But the end of March we were on Royal Caribbean out of Miami and our scooter was delivered to the room. It was not in our room when we boarded but arrived later. Scootaround can let you know where your scooter will be delivered if they know your date of sailing and what ship you'll be on.

To the OP: you might check with Royal Caribbean. They have short cruises out of Los Angeles. Their website states: Royal Caribbean offers an autism friendly initiative for families living with autism, Down Syndrome and other developmental disabilities. For adults they offer: Expedited check-in, boarding and departure Special dietary accommodations including gluten-free But in any event, no matter what cruise line you decide to go with, definitely contact their Access Department ahead of time so they will be aware.

We were on the Caribbean Princess in June. The military credit was not refundable. (We spent it in the casino.)

If you want to be sure that your scooter will fit through your stateroom, I would contact Royal's Access Department and verify the door width. Their website says non-accessible rooms are a minimum of 23" wide. Here's their Access Department contact info: https://www.royalcaribbean.com/experience/accessible-cruising/mobility-disabilities You state you are renting the smaller scooter size which I am thinking would be the "standard scooter" from Special Needs at Sea or the "transportable scooter" from Scootaround. We have rented from both companies and have always ordered the "standard" or "transportable" 3-wheel scooter and have gotten the same exact brand and model from both companies (which is the Pride Go Go Sport). The arms fold up and the seat swivels. We have a fuzzy luggage tag that we just take one off the suitcase and attach to the scooter. The Pride brand scooters are very common so if you have a local mobility store you could check (and test drive) them out. Double-check the pricing from both companies. If you happen to use Scootaround, try discount code USCRUISE (from United Spinal Members) which gives you a discount (if the code doesn't work booking on-line, give them a call and they will manually add it). Your rental company will confirm where you will pick up and drop off your scooter once they know your date of sailing and what ship. Here's a Pride Go-Go Sport video that has a lot of information: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjqpImC0RO0

Not to mention the $100 pp deposit

My husband has a transport chair. They are slightly harder to push if you are on carpet because they don't have the large wheelchair-type wheels but the advantage is that they are a lot easier to fit into a vehicle.

Yes you can park your wheelchair outside the dining areas. Outside the main dining rooms there will be scooters and other mobility devices parked outside. My husband has always taken his rental scooter to the buffet and parked it inside the buffet beside a wall out of the way. Scooters and wheelchairs can be parked outside the casino; just find a wall that you can park next to that is out of the way. We've never had a scooter (or wheelchair for that matter) stolen. I wouldn't leave one unattended at a port stop, though. If you have a mobility store nearby, you might try out a test drive on a scooter. They are really very easy to navigate. The two main scooter rental places (scootaround and SpecialNeedsAtSea) use the Pride brand of scooters. We've rented from both places and have gotten the same exact scooter model from both companies. If you get a scooter and are waiting for an elevator, wait for an empty (or nearly empty) one. Back in to the elevator if you can. Take an empty elevator car no matter which way it is going because you will get to your destination eventually. The crew will help you up and down the ramp when the ship is docked at a port stop. If one of your stops requires the use of a tender, you won't be able to take the scooter on the tender. https://www.royalcaribbean.com/experience/accessible-cruising/mobility-disabilities If you are considering renting a scooter (which your husband will appreciate after pushing a wheelchair around - believe me, I've done it), you might check with Royal's Access Department to see if they have any accessible staterooms available. (866) 592-7225 or special_needs@rccl.com Also check with one of the mentioned scooter rental companies and decide which scooter you want to rent and ask them how wide it is. Royal's non-accessible stateroom doors are at least 23" wide. Interestingly, when I first suggested my husband rent a scooter several years ago, he was not the least bit interested and wanted to just use his wheelchair (or rather, have me push him in his wheelchair). He finally tried a scooter out in a mobility store and he thought it was ok but he still wasn't interested in renting one for the ship. Finally, I said that I would rent one for him and if he didn't like it on the ship, he didn't have to use it and could just stick with his wheelchair. Well... he was so excited about his scooter that he's never looked back. I think it's what he looks forward to most when we cruise and he's always asking me if I've ordered his scooter. He's a totally new and independent person on the scooter.